Pain News and Research

Latest Pain News and Research

‘Brain freeze’ provides clue to migraine cause and therapy

According to latest reports by researchers the headache that is caused by eating something cold like an ice cream, may be caused by a sudden change in brain blood flow. The U.S. team of researchers add that this study may show targets to treat other, more troubling forms of headache such as migraine.

23 Apr 2012

GAO report offers rebuke of Medicare bonus program

A report to be released today by government auditors calls the Medicare bonus program wasteful and questions claims it improves quality of care.

23 Apr 2012

Abbott, St. Jude Medical enter multi-year joint initiative for cardiovascular treatment technologies

Abbott and St. Jude Medical today announced Choice Alliance, a multi-year joint initiative that provides mutual U.S. customers access to a robust portfolio of interventional cardiology, cardiac rhythm management, electrophysiology and intravascular imaging and diagnostic technologies.

23 Apr 2012

Laparoscopy associated with lesser risk of small-bowel obstructions

Open surgery appears to be associated with an increased risk of small-bowel obstructions compared to laparoscopic procedures. This is shown by a new study at the Sahlgrenska Academy, at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

23 Apr 2012

Poor sleep not a significant predictor of fibromyalgia pain intensity

Patients coping with the complex pain disorder fibromyalgia often have difficulty sleeping, and a new study published in The Journal of Pain reports that despite the negative quality of life implications, poor sleep is not a significant predictor of fibromyalgia pain intensity and duration.

23 Apr 2012

Opiate addiction disorders associated with opioid-induced hyperalgesia

Patients with addictive disorders who take methadone or other opioid medications for pain will experience heightened sensitivity to pain, known as hyperalgesia, and new research published in The Journal of Pain shows that the condition does not improve over the course of treatment.

23 Apr 2012

First Edition: April 23, 2012

Today's headlines feature advance information about what the trustees who oversee Medicare and Social Security will say about the financial well-being of these massive programs when they release their annual report later today.

23 Apr 2012

FDA extends review period for linaclotide NDA to treat constipation

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Forest Laboratories, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) notified the companies that it will require a three-month extension to complete its review of the data supporting the New Drug Application (NDA) for linaclotide for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) and chronic constipation (CC).

23 Apr 2012

Herpes zoster vaccine safe and well tolerated: Study

The herpes zoster vaccine, also known as the shingles vaccine, is generally safe and well tolerated according to a Vaccine Safety Datalink study of 193,083 adults published online in the Journal of Internal Medicine.

23 Apr 2012

Brain freeze may share common mechanism with other types of headaches

'Brain freeze' is a nearly universal experience—almost everyone has felt the near-instantaneous headache brought on by a bite of ice cream or slurp of ice-cold soda on the upper palate. However, scientists are still at a loss to explain this phenomenon. Since migraine sufferers are more likely to experience brain freeze than people who don't have this often-debilitating condition, brain freeze may share a common mechanism with other types of headaches, including those brought on by the trauma of blast-related combat injuries in soldiers.

23 Apr 2012

HBO2 therapy can reduce neuropathic pain

Chronic pain affects about 76 million people in the U.S. and carries an economic burden of nearly $100 billion annually. The most frequently used medications, narcotic and non-narcotic analgesic drugs (e.g., morphine, ibuprofen, etc.), do not provide complete or sustained relief of chronic pain. Scientists are currently seeking alternative solutions for chronic pain management.

23 Apr 2012

FDA warns about contaminated ultrasound gel

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued warnings for doctors, hospitals and clinics regarding contaminated ultrasound gel produced by a New Jersey company that infected 16 cardiac patients and could pose serious risks to pregnant women and others who undergo ultrasound imaging and treatment.

22 Apr 2012

ACP offers recommendations to ensure Medicare beneficiaries

A dozen recommendations to ensure that Medicare beneficiaries have access to high-quality, coordinated care were provided today by the American College of Physicians (ACP). The new policy paper, Reforming Medicare in the Age of Deficit Reduction, was released at Internal Medicine 2012, ACP's annual scientific meeting.

21 Apr 2012

State highlights: Ill. Gov. proposes $1.35B cuts to Medicaid

News outlets report on health care policy issues in California, D.C., Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota and South Carolina.

21 Apr 2012

Physician group touts 'high-value' care

News reports indicate that the American College of Physicians, which is focusing this message on treatment choices for diabetes and back pain, sees this idea as a way for patients to get the most out of their their health care dollars.

21 Apr 2012

Orthopaedic research studies in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery

Below are highlights of orthopaedic research studies appearing in the April 18th issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS), as well as the issue's full Table of Contents.

21 Apr 2012

EMA CHMP recommends approval of AMAG’s ferumoxytol

AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has issued a positive opinion for the approval of ferumoxytol, an intravenous (IV) iron therapy, for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in adult patients with chronic kidney disease.

21 Apr 2012

Nanoscale films promote bone growth

Every year, more than a million Americans receive an artificial hip or knee prosthesis. Such implants are designed to last many years, but in about 17 percent of patients who receive a total joint replacement, the implant eventually loosens and has to be replaced early, which can cause dangerous complications for elderly patients.

20 Apr 2012

First Edition: June 20, 2012

Today's headlines include reports that the Veterans' Administration will increase its mental health staffing.

20 Apr 2012

ESC launches European Heart Journal: Acute Cardiovascular Care

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) announced today the launch of the European Heart Journal: Acute Cardiovascular Care, the organisation's official journal of the ESC Working Group on Acute Cardiac Care.

20 Apr 2012